“Well, you’re just a delicate hot-house flower there, ma’am,” Jack drawled, his eyes twinkling. “If you want, I’ve got a heavy overcoat in the car.
That jacket doesn’t cover much.”
Dar tugged her sleeves down and gave him a crooked grin. “Thanks, I’ll live. I think I remembered to pack my gloves in there.” She was glad she’d chosen to wear her heavier jeans and a pair of boots, and made a mental note 396
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to add an extra layer of clothes when she changed.
They got into Jack’s car, a maroon Ford Explorer with comfortable leather seats. He hit a switch on the dashboard as he closed Dar’s door, then walked around and got in, settling his big body in the driver’s seat and starting the engine. “Heated seats. “ He indicated the switch, then he winked at her.
Dar felt the warmth begin to seep through her and she relaxed, stretching her long legs out and gazing at the now impotent weather. “They don’t sell those in Miami,” she commented with a sigh. “You looking forward to carrier duty?”
He nodded. “I am. It means not seeing the folks for a while, but it gives me a chance at some action.” He glanced at her. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m not looking to go drop bombs on someone, okay?”
Blue eyes flicked to his face, and Dar let a tiny, understanding smile cross her lips. “I know.”
“But you train, and train. It would be sort of nice to be able to use that, you know? It’s like if all you could do is run a test-pattern all day, that’d be kinda boring.”
“That’s true,” Dar acknowledged quietly. “I guess it’s just that we all hope all that training won’t be put to use. Even though it’s looking more and more likely that we’ll just end up being the world police force.”
Jack looked at her before returning his attention to the road. “You don’t like that idea?” he asked curiously. “I never thought you had a problem with the use of force, Dar.”
She thought about the question. “You know, I never thought I did either.
God knows I was anxious enough to go into the special forces. I know I wouldn’t have been behind a desk there.”
“You’d have been a rocking SEAL, Dar.” Jack grinned. “Kicked their stuffed-up blue butts, I bet.” He glanced at her. “No offense to your daddy.”
“Maybe.” Dar smiled quietly. “It’s an attractive thought, to have that kind of power—might makes right, all that kind of thing. I think I could have done it.” She remembered wanting to…remembered the taste of blood on her tongue when she’d fairly bitten through it, when her father’s last effort at getting her into the program had failed. She’d been so close. So close to being allowed to join that fraternity. She knew most of the guys, she knew she’d even have had a chance to break down the walls of that male-only thing, because they knew her, they knew her father, they knew her capabilities. They knew she could stick it out when the hard stuff came down, and put a knife where it needed to go.
Instead, stunned and angry, she’d turned her back on the service, and gone a different route. A path no less dangerous, with enemies just as sneaky, but with one major difference. There, she would have been a killer. Here, she was not. She had no idea why, all of a sudden, that mattered.
Jack pulled into the driveway of the Easton family home a few minutes later, the tires crunching on dead branches that lined the pavement. He got out and retrieved Dar’s duffel, then joined her on the walk up to the front door. “We’ve got a surprise inside,” he murmured, his blue eyes lighting up.
“I think you’ll like it.”
Dar eyed him suspiciously. “Jack, I hate surprises. You know that.”
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He grinned, and opened the door. “G’wan.”
Warily, Dar entered, getting an overwhelming draft of warm cinnamon and baking bread that made her remember she hadn’t eaten all day. The inside of the Easton home was large and spacious, a huge entryway leading off into a sunken living room, and directly ahead, the kitchen, where all the nice smells were coming from. Mary Easton poked her head out as she heard the door open. “Dar! Lookit you! C’mere!” She hurried out, sticking a stirring spoon in her apron pocket and smiling. She was a short, round woman with a friendly, open face.
“Hello, mamma Mary.” Dar had to smile back, getting her arms open in time to receive a fragrant hug.
“My gosh, did you get taller?” the tiny woman demanded, looking up at her. “Honey, you look wonderful. You been out on vacation or something?”
“Nope.” Dar chuckled pushing her hair back a trifle self-consciously.
“Just had some time out in the sun recently. We have that down there, you know.”
“Jack, set that bag up in the guest room, then c’mon down and show Dar your new friends.” Mary’s eyes twinkled. “I got some fresh apple bread, you want a slice?”
“Sure, it smells great,” the taller woman replied, setting her laptop down on the low table near the couch and unfastening her jacket. “It’s great to see you.”
“C’mon with me.” Mary latched onto her arm and tugged her towards the kitchen. “I’ve got a dozen things going. I am so glad you let Gerry talk you into coming up here.” She bustled into the large open room, mostly white with blue checkerboards around the edges, and went to the cooling rack near the stove. “Here, put your teeth in this, I know you like it.”
Dar chuckled. “Ah, yes. I hear my staff’s been snitching on me.” She settled on one of the stools and glanced around, appreciating the workmanlike efficiency of the space.
“Now, don’t you be mad at them.” Mary laughed as she handed a slice of the warm, spicy bread to Dar after spreading a bit of butter on the top. “And, honey, I have to just tell you something. That assistant of yours down in Miami is just the sweetest person I’ve ever talked to in my life.”
Dar smiled around her mouthful of bread and chewed a moment, swallowing before she answered. “Kerry?”
Mary nodded. “Yes, what a nice woman. And you know, I mean, I realize it’s a business, and you people don’t probably even talk to each other outside the building, not like we do here in the service, but I think she really likes you.”
“Oh really?” Dar’s eyes twinkled. “What makes you say that?”
Mary beamed at her. “Just her voice…when she said your name, you could tell she was smiling all the time.”
Dar grinned a little. “Well, yes. Kerry is a very, very nice person, and in fact, we’re pretty close friends outside work, too.”
Little fink, she didn’t even
mention Mary had called. I’ll have to think up something suitably sneaky to do to her
in revenge.
“Glad you liked her.”
Jack came back in and tugged Dar’s jacket. “Hey, let me take that for you, 398
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and c’mon with me.”
The surprise. Dar amiably stood and shrugged out of her jacket, letting Jack fold it over his arm, then followed him out the back door to the kitchen and down two steps to a utility room. “You ready?” he whispered mischievously.
Dar could hear some small, muffled noises behind the door she was in front of, but she couldn’t quite make out what they were. “Um, sure,” she replied uncertainly, stepping a pace back as he opened the door and moved aside.
A living tide of fur engulfed her legs, and her eyes widened. “Good grief!”
Nine squirming, stumbling, squeaking puppies were clustered around her boots, tugging at them and sniffing her with wildly wagging taillets.
“Go on, say hello.” Jack grinned. “They’re Alabaster’s.”
Dar looked up before she allowed herself the indulgence of dropping to one knee and sorting among the puppies. Alabaster was Gerald’s staid, dignified Labrador Retriever, an animal so pale she was almost white, hence the name. “They’re gorgeous.” The puppies scrambled up her leg, crying, and she slid down into a seated position, letting them climb all over her. “Damn, they’re so cute.” She picked one up, a tiny boy who wriggled frantically as she brought him close, then nibbled on her ear. “Yow.”
Jack set her jacket aside and sat down next to her, attracting his own mini-herd. “Aren’t they?” He scratched a large female behind the ears.
“They’re five weeks old. We’ve got homes for some of them.” He paused, watching the puppy snuggle down in Dar’s arms and gaze up at her adoringly. “Which one do you want?”
Dar looked up from where she was playing with a puppy paw. “No, sorry, I…” She fell silent for a moment, thinking. “Are you serious?”
Jack cocked his head at her. “Sure. Dad and I talked about it. He worries about you, y’know. He thinks a Lab would be perfect for you.” He scratched a puppy’s chest. “They’re loyal, friendly…obedient. You could take them on walks. It would be good for ya.”
Dar didn’t answer for a minute. She gazed down at the small head now nuzzling her chest, its tiny black nose sniffing interestedly at her hair.
Innocent brown eyes blinked up at her, and the small muzzle opened, to reveal a soft, U-shaped pink tongue.
First fish, now a puppy? What in the hell’s
happening to you, Dar?
“Let me think about it,” she finally said, looking up with a wry smile. “I…really appreciate the offer.”
Jack grinned, then turned as Alabaster entered, sniffing after her puppies with a worried Labrador frown. She spotted Dar and whuffed in amazement, then plowed her way through the herd and proceeded to lick Dar’s face in a thorough, professional manner.
“Easy.” Dar laughed, patting her side. “Yeah, I’m glad to see you too, girl.” She leaned back against the washing machine and sighed, letting puppies run all over her legs. Well, if she couldn’t be with Kerry, this wasn’t a bad second choice. Outside, the wind was howling, and branches thumped against the roof, but she just grinned over at Jack and inclined her head towards the living room. “You up for a fire?”
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He grinned back and reached a hand over to help her up. “Can you still split a log like you used to?”
“Guess we’ll find out,” Dar replied as she headed up the steps, carefully shedding puppies as she went.
KERRY YAWNED AS she woke up, letting her eyes scan the quiet room, and taking in her sister’s sleeping form with a tiny smile. Dawn was just breaking outside, and the first tendrils of pinkish gray were barely visible between the trees in the backyard.
She lay there for a moment, then decided she wasn’t going to get back to sleep and slipped out from under the covers, padding across the carpeted floor and kneeling in front of her duffel bag. Her body felt a little antsy, and she decided a quick run around the lake wouldn’t be a bad idea. So she pulled on a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt over a thick T-shirt, and tugged on her sneakers. Running hadn’t been a favorite activity of hers, but lately, since she’d been joining Dar when she stayed over at the island, and Dar had coaxed her out on nighttime runs at her apartment, she’d developed a taste for it. Or so she told herself. At any rate, it didn’t require any special equipment, and it was comfortably neutral in that it was something both men and women regularly did. “Not a stereotypical gay tip-off,” Dar had said wryly.
She walked quietly down the stairs and to the back door, hearing only the faint stirrings of someone working in the kitchen. She undid the latch and slipped out, sucking in a breath as the cold morning air hit her. “Whoa, boy,”
she muttered, stretching quickly, before she broke into a light jog and headed for the path. “Better warm up fast.” The path was a well-kept gravel one, and she found it with no problem, her feet settling into a familiar, easy rhythm as she allowed her body to wake up. The cold air made her blink a little at first, but she got used to it and took in a lungful as she reached the turn that would take her around the perimeter of the small lake.
It was quiet. She was the only one out here at this hour, and her footsteps against the gravel seemed echoingly loud to her. No sounds but the wind itself reached her, and she realized she’d become so accustomed to Miami’s verdant fauna that the absence of birds and crickets seemed odd and strange to her. She thought about Bob the Duck as she let her strides move her down the lakeside. Bob was an old friend who lived in the drainage canal near her apartment. On summer nights, she often ended up gazing over the black, rippling water, and often as not, Bob would come find her.
She’d taken to keeping bread crusts in her pockets for the old white duck, and on many nights, she’d actually sat down, letting the faint breeze cool her from the muggy heat for a while, until the familiar, waddling shape headed her way. Kerry smiled as she thought of him, remembering the suspicious look he’d given Dar when she’d brought her new friend over to meet her old
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one. It had taken ten minutes or so before Bob had grudgingly come over, waggling his tail at the taller woman and quacking a protest to her.
Her breath appeared as a steady, visible stream, and she glanced around, wishing her running companion was with her. She’d had to really push herself to keep up with Dar, since as much as she kidded the taller woman about her love of chocolate and other sinful indulgences, Dar really was in good shape. It showed in the effortlessness of her running, and her ability to add little interesting additions to her morning workout. Like juggling. She’d hardly believed it when she’d first seen Dar scoop up three rocks, then, while they were running around the island, juggle them neatly as she went. She said it developed balance and coordination, and made your upper body work too, when running mostly just did things to your legs and lower body.
Juggling. Jesus.
Kerry was positive she’d fall right on her face if she even tried it. She continued on around the lake, going downhill, then rounding the back end and heading back up hill again. That part, she acknowledged, she missed in Miami, where the only hills were freeway overpasses. She could feel the strain in her thighs and calves, but she kept on, pushing through the tightness like Dar had taught her.
It was a two-mile circuit, and she was glad to see the house at the end of it when she made it back up to the top of the hill, her breath coming hard and the sweat standing out against her skin. The sun was up by now, and she slowed to a walk as she hit the path up towards the kitchen door, pacing herself and trying to catch her breath. Dar had said stamina would come to her after a while, and she felt satisfied with the effort as she climbed up the steps and into the yard.